✅ Project SETI 3: Eve's Advent

Part XXX: Conquest

The Temetor One was taken completely by surprise by the powerful atomic weapon fired off by the human space station. It easily overwhelmed the energy shielding, the stealth mechanism attached to it and the hull itself—there was a sizable hole in the side of it now, and the plan became to widen it to allow infantry soldiers to board in order to find and liberate the human prisoners.

"Priming the cannon again," Captain Idris announced. "Looks like they're preparing a weapon of their own—employing evasive maneuvers."

Sam nodded silently and stayed in her seat near the captain. "What about that ship that made it to the surface?"

"It's being followed by one of ours," another crewmember responded. "The pilot has reported that it seems to be targeting one of its own—there's a Daxut ship currently attempting to liftoff from a private hangar that matches the description of the vessel Gabriel and company stole."

"Order that pilot to tether to the vessel being attacked. It's likely the humans fleeing—we can't let them get away either," Sam remained outwardly cool and collected, but inwardly, she could hardly fathom the coincidence that both her targets were here. "However... the main objective is still to take the Temetor One for now."

Suddenly, there was an extremely loud high-pitched whine, followed by a blinding orange flash that completely flooded the bridge of the Trailblazer Zero. In the same moment, the ship lurched backward as it was struck by the immense energy weapon the Temetor One had deployed in retaliation to the atom cannon, and several alarms began to sound off within the bridge.

"Our energy shielding was completely wiped out!" a crewmember called out. "The hull has been breached...!"

"Hit them again!" Sam ordered. "Aim for that fucking weapon!"

"You heard her, lock in on that weird fixture they deployed!" the captain echoed. "And get a maintenance crew on that breach now!"

"Target locked," a crewmember confirmed a few seconds later.

The captain's console beeped affirmatively once the atom cannon was ready again. "Taking the shot."

The entire station jolted backward slightly when Captain Idris let the cannon loose. A loud roar once again thundered through space and shook the ground of the nearby planet as it traveled over to the Temetor One in the blink of an eye. When the light from the blast dissipated, it was clear immediately that it had hit its mark—all that remained of the large satellite-shaped weapon were parts of the articulated metal posts that had kept it in position.

"Two of our ACVs have fallen," a female voice reported intensely. "One of them was tailing the suspected human ship—it was shot down by a third party that has entered the fray. That unknown vessel also took out the Daxut scout that was chasing them."

Captain Idris responded by deploying two more in their stead, but quickly upped it to five when she noticed the Temetor One had sent out two more of her scouts. The human aerospace combat vessels were inferior to their Daxut counterparts in almost every way, but she knew that she could win by sheer numbers alone, especially if the remaining four scouts were all Ledda had. The Trailblazer Zero was capable of deploying twenty ACVs total, but she held off on it for now just in case there were any more casualties. She also primed the atom cannon again and locked in on the hole that the first blast had made in the hull.

"Try to capture that 'third party' too," Captain Idris ordered her pilots after it became clear that it was hostile to the human ships as well as the Daxut. "Take it down if you must."